Relationship smarts

I’m in a high school classroom talking to Lisa. (I’ve changed her name and the names of all the students mentioned in this article.) Lisa’s hair is dyed black and purple, and she has numerous piercings, including one in her lower lip that bounces as she talks to me.

“I broke up with my boyfriend because of this class,” she says.

The class is Introduction to Psychology, and the school is Redlands High School in Redlands, California. Lisa’s teacher is Char Kamper, who uses a curriculum called Connections that she developed to teach students about dating, relationships and marriage.

“When did you break up with him?” I ask.

“Three days ago,” Lisa says, and then she looks me straight in the eye. “I realized he only called me when he wanted one thing.”